Miracle baby mother ‘assaulted’

A woman desperate to have a child was “assaulted” in order to make her believe she had conceived a “miracle baby”, a court heard.

Gilbert Deya, an evangelical preacher who runs an international ministry from Peckham, is facing extradition to Kenya for stealing five children and attempting to pass them off as his own.

Police rescued 10 children from his home in Kenya in 2004 and arrested three church members including his wife Mary Juma Deya.

It is feared the youngsters are used to create the illusion of a “miracle birth” and attract donations to the Gilbert Deya Ministries, based in Ormside Road, which claims to have 34,000 worshippers.

On Thursday, City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard how Haringey council took a one-year-old baby into care after it was brought to this country from Nairobi by a British couple in October 2003.

Adina Ezekiel, for the Kenyan authorities, said Mrs E, the supposed mother of baby, known as “child C”, believed she had given birth less than 27 days after a special prayer session held at a Kenyan church. Her faith held despite three separate medical tests in this country confirming she was not pregnant.

Ms Ezekiel told the court: “The judge [who made the order to take the child into care] concluded that in order to make Mrs E believe she had given birth, she was allegedly assaulted.

“It shows a willingness to commit such acts as assault in order to convince others of a particular set of circumstances.”

Deya, 55, was arrested at a South London immigration centre but is resisting his return to Kenya claiming he could face the death penalty or be tortured if convicted.

He claims his open opposition to the Kenyan president could also prejudice his case and he could be charged with the murder of a police inspector.

But no murder charge appears on the Kenyan authority’s warrant sheet.

The hearing, which opened on Wednesday, has heard Deya and his wife harboured five stolen children, aged between 12 months and four-and-a-half years old, between 12 May, 1999, and 19 August, 2004.

Mrs Deya has since been jailed for two years in Kenya.

Deya was remanded on conditional bail until November 8 when a judgement will be made.

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